Nektar Therapeutics (NASDAQ:NKTR) Receives Average Rating of “Buy” from Brokerages

Nektar Therapeutics (NASDAQ:NKTR) has earned an average rating of “Buy” from the seven analysts that are covering the firm, Marketbeat.com reports. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold recommendation, five have assigned a buy recommendation and one has given a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 12 month target price among brokerages that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $4.92.

A number of research analysts have weighed in on NKTR shares. B. Riley started coverage on shares of Nektar Therapeutics in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. They set a “buy” rating and a $4.00 price target on the stock. Oppenheimer upgraded shares of Nektar Therapeutics from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $6.00 target price on the stock in a report on Friday, March 14th. HC Wainwright reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $6.50 price target on shares of Nektar Therapeutics in a report on Thursday, March 13th. Finally, William Blair restated a “market perform” rating on shares of Nektar Therapeutics in a research note on Thursday, March 13th.

Nektar Therapeutics Stock Down 2.3 %

NKTR stock opened at $0.74 on Friday. Nektar Therapeutics has a 52 week low of $0.65 and a 52 week high of $1.93. The company has a market cap of $137.72 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -0.88 and a beta of 0.65. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $0.85 and a 200-day simple moving average of $1.05.

Nektar Therapeutics (NASDAQ:NKTR) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, March 12th. The biopharmaceutical company reported $0.15 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.18) by $0.33. Nektar Therapeutics had a negative return on equity of 173.28% and a negative net margin of 180.70%. The company had revenue of $29.18 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $36.65 million. As a group, analysts expect that Nektar Therapeutics will post -0.72 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Intech Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in Nektar Therapeutics during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $41,000. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company bought a new stake in shares of Nektar Therapeutics in the third quarter worth $86,000. FMR LLC raised its holdings in Nektar Therapeutics by 403.2% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 386,656 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $503,000 after acquiring an additional 309,822 shares in the last quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets raised its holdings in Nektar Therapeutics by 1,877.2% in the third quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 238,846 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $310,000 after acquiring an additional 226,766 shares in the last quarter. Finally, MetLife Investment Management LLC boosted its stake in Nektar Therapeutics by 129.1% during the 3rd quarter. MetLife Investment Management LLC now owns 106,506 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $138,000 after acquiring an additional 60,012 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.88% of the company’s stock.

About Nektar Therapeutics

Nektar Therapeutics, a biopharmaceutical company, focuses on discovering and developing medicines in the field of immunotherapy in the United States and internationally. The company is developing rezpegaldesleukin, a cytokine Treg stimulant that is in phase 2 clinical trial for the treatment of systemic lupus erythematosus and ulcerative colitis, as well as phase 2b clinical trial to treat atopic dermatitis and psoriasis; and NKTR-255, an IL-15 receptor agonist, which is in phase 1 clinical trial to boost the immune system's natural ability to fight cancer.